Sebastian Gorka, serving as Trump’s top counterterrorism official, appeared on CNN Sunday to discuss the latest deadly shooting in Minnesota. The gunman, 23-year-old Robin Westman, was reported to have been born male but identified as a woman.
Gorka zeroed in on that detail. He told anchor Brianna Keilar that the attack echoed the 2023 massacre at a Nashville Christian school, which was also carried out by a transgender shooter. “There is an ideological connection,” Gorka insisted. He said Christians and Catholics are being deliberately targeted.
Keilar pushed back hard. She said Gorka was missing the bigger picture. Since 2020, she noted, there have been 32 school mass shootings. Only two involved perpetrators were transgender or gender-diverse. She cited figures from the Gun Violence Archive, which found that over the past decade, just 0.11% of mass shootings nationwide were committed by transgender suspects.
Gorka snapped. “Forgive me if I don’t go with CNN’s stats, okay?” he said, accusing the network of spreading lies for years. “CNN has proven itself to be wholly inaccurate in all kinds of things over the last ten years,” he added, pointing to the “Russia hoax” and debates over the southern border. His tone grew sharp and heated.
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Keilar didn’t back down. “It’s simple math. Two of 32,” she said. She told Gorka that CNN could not stick with his facts “because they are not accurate.”
That only fueled the clash. Gorka accused CNN of making up “fake news” on the spot. He then tried to pivot, saying the real solution was spotting warning signs before attacks. Shooters, he argued, often interact with schools or police before committing violence.
Keilar pressed him again. “And what about all the non-trans school shooters?” she asked.
“The same thing happens!” Gorka replied. He said schools and authorities repeatedly fail to act. The problem, he argued, was not identity or even weapons themselves, but ignored red flags.
Outside the studio, the exchange drew swift reaction. Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota blasted Gorka’s focus on gender. She said the country should be addressing gun violence, not stigmatizing a community. “Not the moment to point fingers,” Omar said.
The Minnesota shooting has rattled a city already shaken by violence. Families of the victims are demanding answers. Advocates are once again calling for mental health support and tougher gun laws.
For more on the debate, view the full clip below.
Featured image via YouTube screengrab
